An interesting run in with a drunk driver
12-24-14, 10:34 PM
#27
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You have different police than I do. Here, the first DUII gets flushed from the record. (Obviously, the court keeps documentation so they know when you get to number two.) Had the OP called the cops, she would have been cited and required to do a seminar course or they would have simply given her a warning (sad but true). That could be why we have such a drunk driving problem here.
12-24-14, 10:37 PM
#28
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You have different police than I do. Here, the first DUII gets flushed from the record. (Obviously, the court keeps documentation so they know when you get to number two.) Had the OP called the cops, she would have been cited and required to do a seminar course or they would have simply given her a warning (sad but true). That could be why we have such a drunk driving problem here.
12-24-14, 11:03 PM
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Good deed but I think drunk drivers should have to spend time in jail, go through mandatory counseling, and have their license yanked for a while. Sorry but I don't think having your mom get mad at you is going to cure this problem. I hope I'm wrong but there is a good chance she'll do it again.
12-24-14, 11:08 PM
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You're probably right, but those young ones can be impressionable, especially if mom doesn't give her access to a car for a year or two. Maybe this one will be that rare one-and-done drunk driver. Season of hope, and all that.
12-24-14, 11:10 PM
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I think if her mom follows through with not letting her drive until she graduates college, and giving her a bicycle, she will learn from her mistake. People make stupid decisions at 20, let's hope that she learned from it without any devastating consequences. Of course I plan to follow up with her and her mom next Christmas and beyond.
I'm just glad that I'm not fighting her insurance company, which I would have if she hit me.
I'm just glad that I'm not fighting her insurance company, which I would have if she hit me.
12-24-14, 11:28 PM
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12-25-14, 01:10 AM
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I enjoy riding my bike more than driving my car, even in the winter. That's why I had chosen to bike 8 miles each way at night to see friends, despite the fact that I have a perfectly good car and I did not get drunk. I can imagine she will initially see her parents taking her car away and replacing it with a bicycle as punishment. But I hope she will end up enjoying it in the next year and a half.
It's rare for me to get this opportunity to shape someone's life for the better. I feel like I made some friends out of this, rather than calling the police and then having her family hate me for "causing" them legal problems, not to mention me having to go to court to testify as a witness.
If I did get hit and wasn't injured, well, I'd likely still do the same and not involve the police or insurance, if she stopped upon hitting me. Otherwise, I'd memorize the license plate number and call 911.
It's rare for me to get this opportunity to shape someone's life for the better. I feel like I made some friends out of this, rather than calling the police and then having her family hate me for "causing" them legal problems, not to mention me having to go to court to testify as a witness.
If I did get hit and wasn't injured, well, I'd likely still do the same and not involve the police or insurance, if she stopped upon hitting me. Otherwise, I'd memorize the license plate number and call 911.
12-25-14, 04:54 PM
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12-25-14, 08:50 PM
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While I don't support underage drinking, drunk driving, or a combination of the two I applaud how you handled the situation. Parents or the cops, that was a good ultimatum. If the parents are of the right variety this will get the point across to her no problem. And with them calling you to thank you and tell you she's lost her driving privileges it certainly sounds like they're taking this very seriously. You took her off the road before she killed anybody. She also knew you had every right to call the cops and you probably would have if you were anybody else. If I'm her, I don't ever think of driving after so much as a sip of alcohol for the rest of my life, because I'd know how lucky I was that you were the one who stopped me.
12-26-14, 12:40 PM
#38
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I think you did the right thing. The only thing I would add is that if you follow up with her and her mom, just ask bluntly if the girl is an alcoholic. If this really is a case of youthful stupidity, she probably learned her lesson.
But if she is an alcoholic, and her mother will know,, she will drink and drive again. She will quickly forget this incident or use it as justification to drink and drive again, she will be emboldened because she got away with it once. Without being accusatory, I would suggest that she get a professional evaluation about whether she is an alcoholic, who hopefully will suggest rehab right away if she is, before anything worse happens.
But if she is an alcoholic, and her mother will know,, she will drink and drive again. She will quickly forget this incident or use it as justification to drink and drive again, she will be emboldened because she got away with it once. Without being accusatory, I would suggest that she get a professional evaluation about whether she is an alcoholic, who hopefully will suggest rehab right away if she is, before anything worse happens.
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12-26-14, 02:16 PM
#40
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I was riding my bike late at night when I saw a car going slow and weaving across the road, coming within a foot of hitting me. I suspected that the driver was drunk. We both stopped at the next red light and I knocked on the window. I could tell she was seriously intoxicated and I said that I was going to call the police with her license plate number. She then sobbed and begged me not to do so and even asked if I could drive her car home. She seemed scared and thought that driving home drunk was the only way for her to get home.
So I decided to do a good deed. I asked her to immediately stop the car and put the hazards on and give me the keys. I drove the car into the parking lot of the gas station right next to us, just to get it off the road. Then asked her to call her parents and say that she was driving drunk and ask for them to pick her up, all the while holding her car keys so she could not drive. I figured that her parents would get mad at her and that would scare her into never driving drunk, without the lifelong consequences of a DUI. Gave her the ultimatum "it's either your parents or the police".
I waited 20 minutes for her mom to show up, and she immediately hugged me, thankful that I was concerned for her daughter's safety. Of course, she was mad at her daughter as I had expected, and I hope she punished her.
I feel like I did a good deed, effectively getting a young drunk driver off the road. She got lucky that she had to deal with me, rather than getting pulled over, or worse, causing an accident.
So I decided to do a good deed. I asked her to immediately stop the car and put the hazards on and give me the keys. I drove the car into the parking lot of the gas station right next to us, just to get it off the road. Then asked her to call her parents and say that she was driving drunk and ask for them to pick her up, all the while holding her car keys so she could not drive. I figured that her parents would get mad at her and that would scare her into never driving drunk, without the lifelong consequences of a DUI. Gave her the ultimatum "it's either your parents or the police".
I waited 20 minutes for her mom to show up, and she immediately hugged me, thankful that I was concerned for her daughter's safety. Of course, she was mad at her daughter as I had expected, and I hope she punished her.
I feel like I did a good deed, effectively getting a young drunk driver off the road. She got lucky that she had to deal with me, rather than getting pulled over, or worse, causing an accident.
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12-26-14, 04:21 PM
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I think you did the right thing. The only thing I would add is that if you follow up with her and her mom, just ask bluntly if the girl is an alcoholic. If this really is a case of youthful stupidity, she probably learned her lesson.
But if she is an alcoholic, and her mother will know,, she will drink and drive again. She will quickly forget this incident or use it as justification to drink and drive again, she will be emboldened because she got away with it once. Without being accusatory, I would suggest that she get a professional evaluation about whether she is an alcoholic, who hopefully will suggest rehab right away if she is, before anything worse happens.
But if she is an alcoholic, and her mother will know,, she will drink and drive again. She will quickly forget this incident or use it as justification to drink and drive again, she will be emboldened because she got away with it once. Without being accusatory, I would suggest that she get a professional evaluation about whether she is an alcoholic, who hopefully will suggest rehab right away if she is, before anything worse happens.
12-28-14, 08:10 PM
#42
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Thumbs up!
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12-31-14, 01:10 AM
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Following up on this.
Yesterday the girl's mother called me to thank me again, and asked me for advice about buying a bicycle (she knows I'm an avid cyclist). Her daughter's old bike was too small for her, and she wants to buy her a bike before she goes back to college. The girl was saying that she needed a car to get to work, and mom stuck to her promise that she was not allowed to drive. Plus she's grounded on New Years Eve, and it's a big punishment to keep a 20 year old girl stuck at home with her parents on New Years Eve.
So this weekend, I'm going to show up at her house (on my bike of course) and pretty much brag to her about how I love cycling. Can't wait to tell them about my longest bike ride, 430 miles from New Jersey to Virginia Beach ( New Brunswick to Virginia Beach - New Brunswick, NJ ). And also show that I won't let my near death experience that she caused scare me away from cycling.
I'm just so glad I had the opportunity to make new friends out of this situation.
Yesterday the girl's mother called me to thank me again, and asked me for advice about buying a bicycle (she knows I'm an avid cyclist). Her daughter's old bike was too small for her, and she wants to buy her a bike before she goes back to college. The girl was saying that she needed a car to get to work, and mom stuck to her promise that she was not allowed to drive. Plus she's grounded on New Years Eve, and it's a big punishment to keep a 20 year old girl stuck at home with her parents on New Years Eve.
So this weekend, I'm going to show up at her house (on my bike of course) and pretty much brag to her about how I love cycling. Can't wait to tell them about my longest bike ride, 430 miles from New Jersey to Virginia Beach ( New Brunswick to Virginia Beach - New Brunswick, NJ ). And also show that I won't let my near death experience that she caused scare me away from cycling.
I'm just so glad I had the opportunity to make new friends out of this situation.
12-31-14, 08:00 AM
#45
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College: either a cheap new bike or a decent used bike, either one with a really hefty lock...
12-31-14, 09:56 AM
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Following up on this.
So this weekend, I'm going to show up at her house (on my bike of course) and pretty much brag to her about how I love cycling. Can't wait to tell them about my longest bike ride, 430 miles from New Jersey to Virginia Beach ( New Brunswick to Virginia Beach - New Brunswick, NJ ). And also show that I won't let my near death experience that she caused scare me away from cycling.
I'm just so glad I had the opportunity to make new friends out of this situation.
So this weekend, I'm going to show up at her house (on my bike of course) and pretty much brag to her about how I love cycling. Can't wait to tell them about my longest bike ride, 430 miles from New Jersey to Virginia Beach ( New Brunswick to Virginia Beach - New Brunswick, NJ ). And also show that I won't let my near death experience that she caused scare me away from cycling.
I'm just so glad I had the opportunity to make new friends out of this situation.
You wanna score with her, take some booze in a flask with you.
Added: Better yet, Go there on New Years Eve with a bottle of Champagne!
Last edited by trailangel; 12-31-14 at 10:02 AM. Reason: I had a better Idea!
12-31-14, 10:11 AM
#49
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Good man!
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12-31-14, 10:19 AM
#50
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+1 on the above Kudos! I've seen (and done) the "take away the keys" move, and although it isn't easy to make yourself do, it is the right thing. So for any reading who may have the same opportunity, do the world a favor - ask for the keys, and if they aren't forthcoming, reach in and take away the keys. Thank you.